Alcohol Treatment Center

Alcohol treatment centers specialize in alcohol rehab and nothing else. They do not provide facilities for other types of substance abuse.

However, because these rehabilitation centers are so specialized, they may be able to offer services that relate specifically to those needing alcohol rehab. For instance, they may provide facilities for those who need to undergo detoxification (or withdrawal, as it is sometimes referred to). Facilities that do this are often equipped to provide medical treatment and emotional support during this time, as detoxification can be very stressful on both the body and mind.

Other rehabilitation centers that are designed for alcohol rehab only may not provide detoxification treatment. In fact, they may require that the patient have already been completely through the detoxification stage before even beginning their rehab programs. Those who may need detoxification treatment will want to check to see if the alcohol treatment centers they are considering do have the capabilities of handling detoxification, or if they will need to look for another facility.

Besides offering alcohol rehab services only, some facilities may also be operated differently. Some alcohol treatment centers may be considered public; that is, they are supported or operated by a municipality, county or State, or may even receive federal fundings. Other may be private facilities, requiring patients to pay for every aspect of the rehabilitation process.

Additionally, alcohol treatment centers may be very secure, not allowing anyone to enter or leave, at least for a specified period of time. Patients may be monitored closely, and may have to actually prove that they are capable of being trusted with more and more freedom before being allowed to participate in different aspects of rehab programs such as family visits or other types of outside communication.

Others may be totally opposite, providing on the minimal security needed to protect patients' privacy and safety. They trust patients to remain on-site for as long as treatment is needed. The differences do not stop there. There are short-term alcohol treatment centers, where patients stay for a bare minimum amount of time such as 28 days, and others which provide long-term rehabilitation services, allowing patients to stay as long as they feel they need to.

Some facilities are in-patient only, where patients do not (or should not-alcohol rehab is almost always voluntary and anyone who wants to can probably leave unless special circumstances exist) leave until they are considered ready to enter outpatient treatment. At that time, patients may have to enter another facility that is designed for outpatient rehabilitation only. If this is the case, the in-patient facility can usually direct the patient to an affiliated clinic for outpatient and aftercare.

Other alcohol treatment centers may offer support programs, such as AA; some may simply provide information on available meeting sites in the patient's area and require him to join and attend such meetings on his own.

Some alcohol treatment centers, however, actually go beyond alcohol rehab. There are facilities that give students who are considering careers in those areas where they might interact or come into contact with those needing alcohol treatment to actually participate in rehab programs themselves. This gives the participants an idea of what patients experience, which may serve to give them more empathy where rehabilitation is concerned.